Device for the treatment of a fabric, in particular, by means of hydrodynamic needling

ABSTRACT

A device for the hydrodynamic treatment of a fabric, or also a knitted fabric, of a certain width, with a jet bar and a jet strip arranged in it with a multitude of orifices arranged closely adjacent to each other for the formation of a water curtain during the passage of hard water jets that are directed at the threads and their crossing points of the fabric, or such, is already known. According to the invention it is now provided that for the shifting, spreading, evening out, and, if necessary, also for the splitting of the fibers of the threads, the jet bar is aligned at an even distance across its length, but laterally to the longitudinal direction of the product web, and across its entire effective width, and that additionally all jet orifices of the jet strip are directed not perpendicularly, but at an angle lateral to, and therefore the water jets also being lateral to, the product web.

The invention relates to a device for the hydrodynamic treatment of afabric, or also a knitted fabric, of a certain width, with a jet bar anda jet strip arranged in it with a multitude of orifices arranged closelyadjacent to each other for the formation of a water curtain during thepassage of hard water jets that are directed at the threads and theircrossing points of the fabric, or such. A method usable for this device,and a product achieved thereby is known from EP-B-0 193 078. Dependingon the thread, the individual fibers do not distribute parallel to oneanother by means of the water needling, but are adhered on top of oneanother, and do not result in the previously known pattern according toFIGS. 1, 3 of the EP.

It is known to direct the water jets in machine direction laterallyagainst the product web; in this regard, reference is made to U.S. Pat.Nos. 3,214,819, 3,873,255, 5,737,813, 5,806,155, or 6,253,429. However,this does not enable the water jets to have an influence on warp andweft of a fabric. The same applies to the solution according to EP-A-0337 451, according to which the water jets are spread apart in themanner of a fan. In this configuration, the water jets adjacent to eachother interfere with one another. Another solution of the lateral effecton the fibers has become known in an application on the hydrodynamictreatment of a non-woven fiber material, namely by means of WO2002/034987. The evening out of the thickness of the non-woven materialis performed by laterally impacting water jets, which protrude from awater bar that is normally arranged parallel to the product web,however, the jet strips are equipped with orifices extending laterallyto the product web. According to FIG. 5 of this WO, the orifices mayalso protrude in the opposite direction from the water bar from right toleft, which has the advantage that the product web does not laterallyshift on the endless belt carrying it, due to a unilateral impulse. Ifapplied to a fabric, this would result in the treatment of the warpthreads. An even distribution of all fibers of a fabric, however, wouldstill not be achieved.

Based on the device of the type named above, the invention is based onthe task of finding a device, with which all threads of a fabric may betreated across their entire length and distribution with water jets,while spreading the fibers apart.

In order to solve this task, the invention provides that for theshifting, spreading, evening out, and, if necessary, also for thesplitting of the fibers of all threads, the jet bar is aligned at aneven distance across its length, but laterally to the longitudinaldirection of the product web, and across its entire effective width, andthat additionally all jet orifices of the jet strip are directed notperpendicularly, but at an angle lateral to, and therefore the waterjets also being lateral to, the product web. In this case it is alsoadvantageous if the discharging water jets of jet bars, or jet stripsthat are arranged behind one another, are directed against one anotherin order to avoid any shifting of the product web on the endless beltcarrying the same.

A device of the type according to the invention is illustrated by way ofan example in the drawings. They show:

FIG. 1 a schematic top view of a simple product web woven with warp andweft, with a jet bar extending laterally in accordance with prior art,

FIG. 2 a product web, with water jet treatment, as it would bedesirable,

FIG. 3 a product web with jet bars extending laterally, but across theeffective width of the web, having different angles to the machinedirection.

FIG. 4 a product web with jet bars extending laterally to machinedirection, but with jet strips supported in the same, with jet orificesextending laterally in segments.

FIG. 5 a product web with jet bars extending laterally, in the jetstrips of which two jet orifice rows are integrated with the orificesbeing inclined in opposite directions, or two jet bars with only one jetorifice row each, which are then each inclined in opposite directions.

A product web according to EP-B-0 193 078, woven with warp and weft,extends in the direction of arrow 2 by means of a forward runningendless belt that carries the same, and is subjected to perpendicularlyimpinging, hard water jets by means of the jet bar 3, which extendslaterally across the width of the product web. This is according toprior art. According to FIG. 1 it is also known to incline the jets inmachine direction of the product web, or in opposite direction of themachine direction. However, this does not result in an even treatment ofall warp and weft threads within the fabric 1. The treatment accordingto FIG. 2, with a forward running product web 1 in the direction ofarrow 2 is the desired treatment.

In order to achieve this mechanically, according to FIGS. 3 and 5, thejet bars 3′ are aligned laterally to the longitudinal direction of theproduct web 1, and across its entire effective width, and additionallyall jet orifices of the jet strip are directed not perpendicularly, butat an angle laterally, and therefore the water jets laterally againstthe product web. The jet bars 3′ can extend parallel to, according toFIG. 3 a, or each alternating at an angle of 90°+a, or 90−a, accordingto FIG. 3 b, across the product web.

It is also advantageous if laterally aligned, and laterally spraying jetbars are combined with jet bars, the jet strips of which have orificesaligned perpendicularly on the product web. In this regard, anembodiment example of jet bars and assigned jet strips would bemeaningful, which has jet orifices in the center spraying laterally inboth directions, and a jet bar is arranged in front and behind, with jetstrips that are aligned as usual perpendicularly onto the product web.

According to FIG. 4 a it is also possible to embody the jet bar 3laterally, or just slightly inclined across the product web, but toequip the jet strip with jet orifices, which are arranged not parallelto the extension, but laterally, and adjacent to one another in segments4′ at short distances (4) to each other. The jet orifices each extendlaterally and are inclined in opposite directions, as is indicated inFIG. 4 b by the arrow 5. However, it is also possible in the case of thesegments 4 to provide jet orifices 5′ in each segment that spray in themanner of a fan, which thus spray perpendicularly, as well as in bothdirections laterally to the product web.

In a jet bar according to FIG. 5 a that extends laterally across thewidth of the product web, the one jet strip, FIG. 5 b, may have two rowsof jet orifices, wherein the jet orifices are laterally tapered inopposite directions 5, or at least two jet bars according to FIG. 5 cmay be provided adjacent to each other with one jet strip each, whereinthe orifices have jet orifices that are inclined in opposite directions5.

1. A device for the hydrodynamic treatment of a fabric web of a certainwidth, comprising: a jet bar having a jet strip arranged in said bar andprovided with a multitude of orifices arranged closely adjacent to eachother for the formation of a water curtain of water jets that aredirected at threads and thread crossing points of the fabric, wherein,for shifting, spreading, evening out, and splitting of the fibers of thethreads, the jet bar is positioned at an even distance across its lengthfrom the web, but laterally of a longitudinal direction of the web, andacross an entire width of the web, all of said orifices of the jet stripdirected not perpendicularly, but at an angle lateral to the web so thatthe water jets are also lateral to the web.
 2. The device according toclaim 1 wherein the angle of the laterally aligned water jets isinclined at 5 to 30 degrees from a vertical.
 3. The device according toclaim 2 wherein the jet strip has at least two rows of jet orifices, thejet orifices of the two being aligned against each other at the sameangular incline.
 4. The device according to claim 2 with several jetbars, the jet strips of which each have at least one row of jetorifices, successive jet bars having jet strips, the orifices of whichare each directed at opposite, but equal angles to the product web. 5.The device according to claim 2, further comprising a jet bar with jetorifices directed perpendicularly to the product web.
 6. The deviceaccording to claim 5 wherein at least three jet bars are arrangedadjacent to each other, including a first jet bar with a jet strip withorifices aligned perpendicularly to the web, one or two additionaladjacent jet bars with jet strips aligned laterally to the web and withorifices of both adjacent orifice rows aligned in opposite directions,and finally a jet bar with jet strips with orifices alignedperpendicularly to the product web.
 7. The device according to claim 1wherein the jet bar is arranged perpendicularly to the web longitudinaldirection across the web, the jet orifices in the jet strip beingarranged not parallel to the extension, but laterally, and adjacent toone another in segments at short distances to each other.
 8. The deviceaccording to claim 7 wherein the direction of the lateral orifices forthe jet strip extends in the opposite direction in each adjacentsegment.
 9. The device according to claim 7 wherein the orifices arealigned in the manner of a fan in the segments of the jet strip.
 10. Thedevice according to claim 7 wherein the incline position of two jet barsarranged behind and adjacent to one another changes, i.e. once at a90°+an angle a to the web longitudinal direction, and subsequently at a90°—an angle a.
 11. The device according to claim 10 wherein the angle ais ±10 to
 600. 12. The device according to claim 1 with an endlesslyrevolving base that carries the product web, the base being an endlessbelt that is driven vertically.